Great Barrier Reef supporters trying to

stop the coal mines that are harming it

By Michael Slezak, The Guardian, adapted by Newsela staff on 11.30.16
Word Count 721

A school of sh hovers over staghorn coral on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Rick Loomis/Los Angeles Times/TNS

The former head of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has called for action to
protect the reef. He said a ban on new coal mines in Australia is needed to guard against
climate change, the heating up of Earth's climate.

I love the reef and I have worked to preserve it since 1979. I will oppose anything that
threatens to destroy it, said Graeme Kelleher, who was the rst chief executive of the
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. He held this position for 16 years. The Great
Barrier Reef is one of the seven wonders of the world, he said.

The Great Barrier Reef is the largest living thing on Earth. It spans more than 1,200 miles of
islands and underwater reefs. It is home to countless sh and other sea life, and is made
up of over 600 types of coral.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 1

Coal Industry Is Harming The Reef

Australia cannot have a healthy Great Barrier Reef and a continuing coal industry,
Kelleher said. He is also a member of the Ocean Elders, a group of global leaders
concerned about ocean conservation. Fellow members include the famous anthropologist
Jane Goodall and biologist E.O. Wilson.

Kelleher added his name to a petition started by Greenpeace Australia Pacic. It calls on
Australia's prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, to put an immediate ban on new coal mines.
Greenpeace is a controversial environmental group that is considered too extreme by
some. The group uses protests and other forms of direct action to draw attention to its
causes.

The Australian government is facing a deadline for reporting on the reef to a UNESCO
committee. UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientic and Cultural
Organization. It keeps a World Heritage List of valued sites around the world. The Great
Barrier Reef is one of these sites.

Reef Could Be Added To Endangered Sites List

After Australia submits the report, UNESCO will decide whether to consider putting the
Great Barrier Reef on its list of endangered World Heritage sites. The list names sites
UNESCO believes are threatened by human or environmental factors.

The government will need to report on how it has funded and implemented a long-term
plan for protecting the reef, called Reef 2050. It will also need to explain how a recent
bleaching event has affected the reef.

Earlier this year, the reef experienced the worst bleaching event in recorded history.
According to government agencies, 22 percent of the reef was killed in one hit. Bleaching
is caused by unusually warm waters. The higher temperature leads the algae that sustain
coral to abandon the reef. When the algae leave, the coral starves and turns white.

This event came at the end of a long-term decline of the reef, Kelleher said.

Half The Reef's Coral Is Gone

Over the last 30 years, the reef has lost 50 percent of its coral cover, Kelleher said. One
of the major causes of this is climate change, he said.

Kelleher said the continued health of the reef demanded action on climate change. This
includes a halt to new or expanded coal mines.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 2

He said one coal mine in particular the huge Carmichael mine planned by the
multinational company the Adani Group must not go ahead. The Australian
Conservation Foundation, another environmental group that wants to protect the reef, is
currently ghting the Adani Group in Australia's highest court. They want the court to
overturn the federal environmental approval of the mine.

Taking The Battle To Court

The foundation is appealing an earlier ruling in favor of the mine. Its representatives are
expected to argue that emissions from the burning of coal from the mine will worsen
climate change and harm the reef. The government has previously argued that there is no
link between the mines coal and climate change.

Kelleher said that a court that understood the science would recognize that a link does
exist. Although the coal will not be burned in Australia, it will still be burned in India and
that will affect the Great Barrier Reef, he said.

Shani Tager works with Greenpeace Australia Pacic on its reef protection efforts. She said
Kelleher has a wealth of knowledge about the threats the Great Barrier Reef is facing. "His
comments are a stark reminder of our need to take serious action to save the reef, Tager
said.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 3